*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of Musk

* English (mainly Suffolk): variant of Must, itself as a surname of English origin from Middle English must (“must (fermenting juice)”). * English (mainly Suffolk): alternatively perhaps in some cases from Middle English

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In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
name

A surname. · A locality in the Shire of Hepburn, central western Victoria, Australia.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

* English (mainly Suffolk): variant of Must, itself as a surname of English origin from Middle English must (“must (fermenting juice)”). * English (mainly Suffolk): alternatively perhaps in some cases from Middle English muske (“musk”). * Americanized form of Dutch Musch, from Middle Dutch mussche (“sparrow”; modern Dutch mus). * Dutch: nickname or metonymic occupational name from muskus (“musk”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Derivation mentionmustenm · must (fermenting juice)
  • Derivation mentionmuskeenm · musk
  • Derivation mentionMuschnl
  • Derivation mentionmusschedum
  • Cognate mentionmusnl
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "gloss",
      "args": {
        "1": "fermenting juice"
      },
      "expansion": "(fermenting juice)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "must",
        "t": "must (fermenting juice)"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English must (“must (fermenting juice)”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "muske",
        "t": "musk"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English muske (“musk”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "nl",
        "3": "Musch"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch Musch"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "dum",
        "3": "mussche"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Dutch mussche"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "mus"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch mus"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Must",
      "Must#English"
    ],
    [
      "must",
      "must#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "must",
      "must#English:_juice"
    ],
    [
      "muske",
      "muske#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "musk",
      "musk"
    ],
    [
      "Musch",
      "Musch#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "mussche",
      "mussche#Middle_Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "mus",
      "mus#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "muskus",
      "muskus#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "musk",
      "musk"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A surname.",
        "A locality in the Shire of Hepburn, central western Victoria, Australia."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "7254c897bb53aa618048e949dbe0c981f0ec2285899b47c0a8e4cc14b8296a80",
      "rawRecordSha256": "de238aa1bd40f6f98d7483523a8d6a7cd0e6320b311838abc06095289d323c09",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 7805516
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for Musk →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-TXVzaw